This entry was posted
on Monday, September 3rd, 2012 at 8:35 am and is filed under Chet The Dog.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Both comments and pings are currently closed.

120 Responses to “Happy Labor Day, Everybody!”

Happy Labor Day! We hope all of our friends who believe in the power of collective bargaining get to enjoy a great day off work. Thanks to our Pop-Pop and others like him, our own mom and pop are going to be home having fun fun fun with us today.

Dan grew up in Flint and remembers the auto union strike of 1937-1938. It was the first sit-down strike. Unions were not considered legal and the governor brought in the militia and had machine guns pointed at the GM plant.

The strikers were starving and their wives brought in a ladder and started handing out food to them.

Dan was not allowed to go to the plant (he was only 8 years old) but his older brother went and saw this.

The union won. Later on when Dan was waiting to get into the Navy he was working at the GM plant, but that is a story for another time. . . snicker

PISSED!…So my friend is right at this moment sitting at the very-not-busy place all alone….grump!…Her boss just came by and said, “Did you not get the message?”…sniff!…”Don’t come in on Labor Day – the new system is not up and running.”…GRUMP! So she will be on her way home now…heh!

appy Labor Day! The newspaper says this holiday is losing its’ significance but I will always remember the workers who put their lives on the line so that we could be treated fairly. Unions lately have gotten a bad rap by those who would drag us backwards into the 19th century. No vacations, 10 – 12 hour days. Hey! sounds like Rio’s job! Organise! I’ve been treated poorly by bosses in my work life where having a collective voice would have made a difference. I never had a union job in the U.S. but the hospital in Canada was all Union. If there was no Union our own Jasper would not have a job! Go Unions!

Sam: Good for your daddy, Sam. Good bosses are out there, Union or non-Union. They know that a work force that is happy is more productive and there is less turn-over in loyal employees. I’ve been lucky enough to have worked for a few great bosses like your dad over the years. Here’s to a happy, productive work force!
Uh, Rio: Bummer!

More on Dan in Flint. Dan was only a weekly radio show when he was in high school. They came on right after the Gospel Melody Boys. Dan and his crew, he couldn’t remember what the name of their show was called, were pro Union. This did not endear him to the GM president of the time, who (on the radio) announced that Dan would never be able to get a job at GM.

More later. Zoë has taken 6 of the Pack for a walk / run. I am doing the home fires. Or maybe I could do some home fries?

Hey everyone. Happy Labor Day. We had a very special breakfast today — dad made buttermilk pancakes for mom and me because it’s her birthday today. She’s one of the many September birthdays on the blog. The pancakes were quite yummy too. Dad’s range of cooking expertise is fairly limited, but he is quite adept at pancakes. It’s hot and humid here, plus rain likely later today, but at least the sun is shining now.

One more thing on Dan. When Dan was waiting to go into the Navy (this is after the CIA) he worked at the GM plant. (snicker to the GM president who thought that would never happen). He was pro union, but none of the workers believed it. Since Dan had been in the CIA they were certain he was there to spy on them.

Considering the times that is not a farfetched idea. But they were wrong about Dan.

We will be leaving tomorrow for Southwestern Colorado (where the major part of the Dog Who Knew Too Much takes place).
If everything goes according to plan, we will return a week from tomorrow.
Mom tells me we may even arrive home that Tuesday before the UPS truck delivers AFOC. This will be a major thing to look forward to as we leave the Colorado mountians.
There is no internet or cell phone service the places we go so we will be off the grid completely

Happy (no) Labor Day to All!
(even Rio’s Friend who is returning home!)

No experience with unions here, but at one job where Nana worked many, many moon ago union types were hanging around trying to convince the employees a union would be in their best interests. Strangely enough it was an insurance company.

Barb here, and don’t tell Maggie I was asking about this. Seems that my little girl is barking a bit much. No one has complained yet, but she thinks she should bark when she hears another dog barking, when the lady next door is talking loudly to her kids or dog, or any number of other things.

I don’t want to buy a shock collar, but has anyone had experience with one of those little table top devices that makes a high frequence sound when a dog barks. Supposed to be effective for up to 25 feet, indoors or out.

Home!…She made it home – it is a 25 – 60 minute drive depending on the traffic…snort!…This morning I think she made it back home in about 15 minutes with no speeding tickets…grunt!…Then she took us on a really long walk up a really high hill and now we are home trying to breath again…gasp!wheeze!…This is the longest walk Beau has ever been on…heh!chough!heh!…Boy is he tuckered out!

Plans!…Those two are going to go out for brunch and then she says we are all going to pull up the garden….wheeze!…They have roasted and frozen tons of chili peppers and the tomatoes are finished. The bell peppers are done too..sniff!…So lots of work to do to clean everything up….snort!

SiberH!….Woooooo!…Hey pal, you will be in my state! In one of the most beautiful parts too…snorkel!…Are youse guys gonna be camping? Will you be sitting around a campfire singing songs and howling at the moon?….woooooooOOOOOOooooooOOOO!…Boy oh boy, I wish I could be with youse guys, I really do…snort!….Someone has Had It Up To Here! and is ready to quit the damned-busy-place…wheeze!

Barb: We have not heard of the table device, but it “sounds” like it could work. Otherwise, you may have to call in the Dog Whisperer.
(whispering) I don’t like those shock collars either! One time I came back from a Doggy Condo wearing one of those collars. Nana was shocked they would do such a thing. When she inquired about it they claimed: “your dog must have been wearing it when he came here.” Needless to say I never went back there!
Siber-H has given good advice.

Wose: Like Siber-H, we didn’t know Hal David had written that song. (of course there are a lot of things we don’t know…..)

You send the best cards, Riö!
I just thought of two Plunderers that are laboring away this day…Bella and her Giant.
We are hoping (with the capable assistance of Tenzing) the Little Cabin in the Woods will be completed in time for youse to enjoy some of this day. No need to start on the Hide-A-Way just yet. For the Rockies, the World Series are only a Dream in their Hearts.

Training a dog not to bark especially a working dog is very difficult. We have never used any sort of collar, but Newfoundlands are food motivated.

I don’t know if this would work for you Maggie. First is this inside barking or outside barking?

If outside barking . . For a week when Barb takes you outside have a lead connected from you to her. If you are food motivated when you either start barking or if there is something that Barb thinks might start you barking, she casts some kibble on the ground. Then when you don’t bark, she praises you. If you are fond of a certain toy this also works.

If inside and watching from the window . . Barb needs to claim the window. She must be the alpha. When you go near the window she tells you no and stands in your way.

This is time intensive, but it does work. Our first Newf was a danger on walks because she would lunge and bark at any vehicle. Zoë couldn’t hold her if she did this. Well, actually she would but she would be dragged down the street. We started her with this training and within a week she would see a vehicle coming and look for her treat instead of barking and lunging. After a month she just stopped the whole thing.

Siber-H: yes, I know that you have repeatedly said that you are always on a leash. Being where I live, it is hard for me to wrap my brain around it. But has long as you are happy and can run free in your dreams that is all that matters. Have a good trip.

Thank you Melanie for all the good advise. Maggie is more food than toy oriented, so I will pick up some good training treats. I like the idea of “claiming” the sliding glass door too, as that is where most of the inside barking occurs. I tried closing the curtain, but she learned quickly to pop her head under there. Lots of good things to bark at from that vantage point – kids, dogs, squirrels, etc.

It may not have been an elk, but Luna and Tenzing cornered a deer when they were but pups. It was in the middle of the night and I let them out for a bathroom break. Instead of tending to the necessaries, they bolted into the dark. Carpola! I ran in the house to get AJ. Picture it, AJ and I—he in his boxers, I might add—running through fields and wooded areas looking for the pups. AJ found them, sitting side by side and looking back and forth at each other and then at the deer that they cornered against a farmer’s fence. “what do we do now?” answered with a tail wag that said, “No idea. I thought you had a plan.”.

I may have a different view on unions. There was a time where they were necessary an long overdue in the fair treatment of the workforce. Yet, today many of the labor laws we have address the same issues that unions addressed. If a non-union employer unionizes in today’s era, it likely means management failed. There are bad managers out there, and great leaders like Sam’s dad—that can make all the difference.

Unfortunately, not all employers are like Sam’s Paw. YSAS found that out the hard way with production companies. Non-union are NOT treated well. They MUST treat the Union well. This is not just about money, but about risk and limbs! Because when the Union is treated well, the non-Union is treated better than it would be.

If only every employer and employee respected themselves and each other to help create a good work environment. Hmmm . .

Not sure why someone would want a Union in an insurance company . . Pondering.

CHobbit, I have a fenced in acre to run around in at home, and I go to dog parks. Whenever we go to Husky Rescue in the mountains I get to run there because a lot of the land is fenced in with a 6 foot fence.
Sibers do need to be able to run.

Bella, as far as those labor laws, our mom and pop are considered “exempt”, so those laws don’t apply. They get called to work any time of night or day, 7 days of the week, and they have no choice but to go in. Pop’s boss tells him that he must work a minimum of 50 hours per week, and that doesn’t include all of the time he must work when he is on call, nor the 1 or 2 weekends per month he requires him to work thru the night. Mom and all of her co-workers had their pay cut by 25% two years ago, when her company decided to change their long-honored partnership plan, even though they were making record profits. Unfortunately, there is no organized union for them, but if one tried to organize, you’d better believe they would both join up.

Garden!…Whew! The garden and most of the peppers are pulled up and drying out….snort!…She left the bell pepper plants and a jalepeno plant which are still producing…wheeze!….I helped out a lot by getting right under foot and in the mud up to my knees….woooo!….Then we came inside, she grabbed me and threw me in the big tub full of water downstairs….grump!….I almost drowned I tell youse. I almost drowned!…wheeze! …She said I was long over-due for a bath. Beau has had two and I have had none so there….grumble!sneeze!

It is a blah rainy day, so we here are making tomato sauce and also roasting red pepper. We tried a new experiment this year. We planted peppers in the same bed as the tomatoes. Consequently, we got very few peppers. 🙁

Siber dear – ve are packing for the trip of camping. Should Natasha bring red seqvined spike heels or vons of leopard print? Is not leopards in Colorado, no? Ve vould not vant be mistaken.
And vill you bring the marsh of mellows? Ve must try gourmet food called “s’mores”.

AJ and I quit working shorty after ten last night but got up early and started working again. Yawn. Grump. We are working on installing the woodstove today, and if we’re luckily, can paint tonight. We were fortunate someone had an old woodstove they gave to us. It saved us several hundred dollars. It was rusted and in very rough shape. A little elbow grease and it looks like new.

Hey, y’all! Mom is finally back from her book show. Well, actually, she got back real late last night, so it’s a good thing she has today off, because all she has done so far is lay around reading and watching DVDs — she didn’t even turn on the computer for me until just now! Dad has football practice and duty after school today, so Mom’s trying to get motivated to go to the store for some groceries for the week. It’s a good thing I already have plenty of food, because Mom doesn’t seem to be moving very fast!

Oh, and when Mom was in college, she spent one summer working for a certain toy company that is famous for a fashion doll (who almost shares a name with someone on this blog) and model cars with extremely warm tires. Get it? In order to work there, she had to join a union. It was just a summer job, so she didn’t think too much about it until her very last paycheck — when they took out her union dues! 🙁

Rebecca!…So when can me and my friend actually move into The Little Cabin In The Woods?…snort!…She doesn’t actually know she is moving, but after this morning I bet she will be okay with the plan…heh!heh!

Working!…Those guys have finally quit working. The little rain storm that moved through and dumped about 3 or 4 raindrops made them hurry up and finish…grunt!…All dry and hot out there again. I’m completely dried off after that dunking I got earlier…grumble!

Finale!…Time to settle in and watch the season finale of Breaking Bad….yeeep!…Where’s my couch cushion???…gasp!

Rebecca – next shew is in October. There is a little village in New York that is home to artisans and their studios and stores. On the October weekend that commemorates a certain Italian sailor (getting lost, landing somewhere he thought was somewhere else, and doing it all on someone else’s money) the village shuts its streets down to cars, and artists set up booths along the main streets of the village. Sounds like it will be a fun shew…as long as the weather holds up.

We want you all to know, Melanie is our idol. She mentioned today that they were doing a “comfort food” dinner of mac n cheese, along with fried green tomatoes. It sounded so good, we had the same thing here. Yum!

Weird thing happened tonight. About an hour ago, every single crow in the entire state of Massachusetts was in our backyard, hollering their heads off. It was so loud, you could hear it over a vacuum cleaner. Gramp walked out to the back fence and they quieted down, but as soon as he walked away, they started up again. Then they quoted down and the blue jays started.
Anyone have any ideas what this could have been about? There were so many birds, it really was kind of spooky

Rose!… That day out at the ball park is the reason she is doing okay today…heh!heh!…Tomorrow is another story, but today she is doing really great..snorkel!…Except for the bath thing I have enjoyed her being home. Her mother was itching to get that garden cleaned out and my friend made short-work of it. So her mother was relieved she was home too…heh!…I don’t know how or when she got those tickets for yesterday, but it was a true life blessing in disguise. I’m so glad she got to go and got those autographs of guys we really love…sniffle!…She talked to Charlie and he was super-duper nice….heh!…What a great day! What a fabulous day!…sniffle!

Thanks for all the pictures, Rio. We especially love the FOC and Mother Bogar(?)
We loved Green Mile too, Wose, and that guy was so young. Very sad. How did he die? Do you know?
T&G, youse guys better get out of there but quick! Sounds like you’re in the middle of a Hitchcock movie. Let the wrotten kats behind to deal with those birds.
Melanie’s mac & cheese, with yummy fried green tomatoes sounds great.
We are making our chicken pie with cream sauce specialty, using some of our left-over roasted chicken..

Newbies!…All you newbies probably don’t know who Mother Bogar is, do you?….heh!heh!…Lets just say she is a close child-hood friend of my friend…snorkel!…If you want to know the back-story I might be able to tell it again, if not, just know that Mother Bogar is near and dear to my friends heart…sniffle!

Snowbella: You are one of the lucky ones who has a wonderful boss. There are those bosses who pay no attention to labor laws – they run their ship as they wish. Yes, one can take them to the labor board and presumably win but that could take months and in the meantime you have been fired! If you have a family to support or are vunerable in some other way you may find yourself staying with the job despite the unjust treatment because it is better than no job.
I had a job with a boss who did things “her own way” when I first moved to Canada. I found a Labor Board poster with the laws clearly printed on it, one of them being, “This poster must be posted in all job sites” and hung it on the wall when I went in for my early morning shift. A special meeting was called that afternoon and it was all about who hung this poster up? Nothing to do with the many laws she was breaking. No one spoke up to call her to task and no one admitted putting the poster up and she continued to “do her thing”. I was eventually let go by just being given less and less hours every week until I was down to 1 4 hour shift a week and then none. I did not fight to keep that job but there were those that did.

Mother Bogar and a FOC! Good to see the little lady.
Oh, and Rio? Nice balls! HAhahahahahahahHAwoowoohoohah. Seriously, I’m glad your friend had such a good time and got to meet a couple real nice ball players.
We had reubans tonight with yummy German Rye and corned beef from the local meat store.

I forgot to mention this morning about my Daddy – the sausages his company makes are made by hand. The sausage makers are very loyal to Daddy and so a good product goes out the door every day.

Our local TV went in there to film their guys making sausages. The sausages had lumps and bumps, some were half filled and some looked like baseballs. It was like Lucy and Ethel in the chocolate factory!

SiberH: Your memory is improving along with your computer skills. I am very impressed you made a link!.
My computer has decided to make the print on the blog smaller and smaller. I now need a magnifying glass to read it.
I’m off to finish reading The Wailing Wind, A Tony Hillerman novel. Good night All.

Walk!….gasp!…Twice in one day!…wheeze!…She’s determined to kill us both….wuffle!cough!…I’ve had it. Maybe tomorrow I will relate the story of Mother Bogar and her tribe…heh!heh!

Show!…We are still watching Breaking Bad – at least now we are. Supper is over, dishes are done, the big walk is done once again!…grunt!…Now it is time to bring the show home, although we are all a little afraid of what will happen at this point…gasp!…Couch cover I need you!….yeeep!

We don’t see many movies, but the other day when Mama was home alone, she found that there are multiple seasons of hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, Cracker and Rosemary and Thyme on Netflix. No one else here likes those shows, so nOw she knows that whenever she is home alone working on shew stuff, she can have one of those guys for company. Now she can’t wait to be home alone!

We want to hear the Mother Bogar story too. Will have to read it tomorrow though, as Barb is feeling under the weather and is crawling under the edge of the quilt. Just a bad cold and sore throat. First one in years, probably picked it up in the germ factory, otherwise known as the grade school she went in last Friday. Night all.

Happy labor day all and Happy Birthday, Debbie!!! Mom is one of the September birthdays but hers is the 29th….almost the end of the month. This b-day is a pretty big one for her (don’t tell anyone but she will be 60 this year) and she is a little freaked. She wishes she had CHobbit’s will power and could lose alot of weight so she would be in better shape for this decade. Oh, well. Maybe she will bet inspired soon.

Mom and Dad both work for small family owned companies so no unions there. One of the biggest drawbacks is that the rules often change depending on the mind of the bosses. They have both been treated fairly well (Dad much better then Mom) but both work a lot of hours with minimal benefits. Mom gets no sick days, no personal days and only 5 holidays per year. She only gets 2 weeks of vacation after 33 years. Oh, well…no one told her she had to stay. She could have looked for another job a long time ago.

Hope every one had a great holiday! Why do the long weekends seem so short?

Tupper and Gilly, did your Gramps look for Hawks or Owls when the Crows were having a fit? One day I heard many Crows out in the front yard (at the parents) and went out to look. They were yelling like crazy and the whole block was vibrating with the sound. It sounded like HAWK! HAWK! and sure enough there was a hawk in a tree. I didn’t see it until it tried to fly away. The Crows followed it screaming.

It is the time of year for Hawks to be migrating to the south.
Blue Jays…well this is the time of year they yell.

The other day, while I was at work, my cousin stole my iphone and tested to see if it can survive a 40 foot drop,
just so she can be a youtube sensation. My apple ipad is now
destroyed and she has 83 views. I know this is totally off topic but
I had to share it with someone!